International Weightlifting Federation declines Russia’s ban for 2017 World Championship

The 2017 IWF World Championship will be held in the US between November 27 and December 5

MOSCOW, September 7. /TASS/. The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) officially dismissed earlier media reports that weightlifters of the Russian national team had been suspended from taking part in the 2017 World Championship in the United States, a spokesman for the IWF told TASS on Thursday.

Earlier in the day, InsidetheGames sports web portal reported that all Russian weightlifters would be barred from the World Championship in connection with numerous violations of anti-doping regulations during Olympics.

"It was not a statement made by the International Weightlifting Federation, it was an article," the IWF spokesman said in an interview with TASS. "If there is any official development or a decision it will be communicated to the Russian Weightlifting Federation directly."

The spokesman said that if any precedent occurs, "the Russian Weightlifting Federation will be duly advised in an official manner."

"It is an article by the InsidetheGames and it is not a legal decision, which will be taken by the Executive Board," according to the IWF spokesman.

InsidetheGames sports web portal reported that besides Russia eight other national teams would be allegedly subjected to the suspension over the violation of anti-doping rules and the countries at the issue are Kazakhstan, China, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Turkey, Ukraine and Moldova.

Maxim Agapitov, the president of the Russian Weightlifting Federation (RWF), told TASS earlier in the day that media reports about the Russian national team’s suspension were merely gossips and such decisions must be made by the executive officials of the IWF.

"Do not deal with gossips," Agapitov said in an interview with TASS. "A decision about suspending a national team from the World Championship can be either made by the IWF Executive Board or by the international federation’s conference. The Executive Board is scheduled to convene on November 30."

The 2017 IWF World Championship is scheduled to be held in the United States, namely in the city of Anaheim, California, between November 27 and December 5.